Replatforms, however, are tricky. It’s natural to go into the process thinking that shiny new features and functionality automatically translate to better results. But new doesn’t really equal better. Finding the right features and functionality that resonate with the different visitor segments who come to your website—that’s how you get to better.

So the obvious question here is: How do you figure out which bells and whistles deserve to be built into your new website? You test them. In fact, testing can be leveraged to inform all three phases of the replatforming process: planning, execution, and evaluation. (Check out this video to get Forrester Research Senior Analyst Joe Stanhope’s view on how testing can help you improve a replatforming initiative.)

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Bruce Ernst is the former vice president of product management at Monetate. He has more than 20 years of experience in applying strategic plans to immediate execution as well as communicating complex technology solutions in a simple and straightforward manner. Prior to joining Monetate, Bruce was head of Webstore Product Management at GSI Commerce (now part of eBay), a Monetate customer.